So it didn’t take long, the new Mac App Store was cracked within hours of it’s release. At current there are two weaknesses in the anti-piracy system that has been deployed on the Mac App Store.

The first is down to developers mistakes, if they had followed Apple’s guidelines then this one wouldn’t of worked. Some applications just require you to copy the code signature and some other files from a free app, and paste those into a paid app to enable it to run. If the developers had of followed the guidelines then a check would occur where it checks the code signature ID to see if they match the app’s bundle ID.

The second exploit is the removal of the DRM, similar to what happened on the iPhone App Store. It uses an application known as ‘Kickback’, currently the application is unavailable but as soon as the Mac App Store becomes more populated I’m sure we will see the application surface.

Engadget have received some pictures, which they cannot confirm as being real but they do look real, of the upcoming Apple Tablet. It’s only just over an hour now until the event begins so it won’t be long until we find out.

Here’s what Engadget posted:

we just got two very interesting images of what certainly looks like a prototype Apple tablet, or what could be the tablet bolted down to a table. It’s big — really big — and it’s running what clearly looks like an iPhone app, although we’ve never seen an iPhone app with that interface or at that resolution before. We also see a WiFi icon and a cell service indicator, although tragically there’s no carrier listed.

Apple Tablet Prototype w/ iPhone

So the few picture leaked do look a lot like people thought which is a large iPhone but Steve Troughton-Smith had some interesting ideas about the images.

So from what we have seen we’re guessing the resolution might be around 640×1024, that the picture shows a non-OLED device, however this doesn’t rule one out. And that Apple are still using Google Maps for the device.

The images show an interesting case around the side, this could be for security or just to disguise the device, as some people over at iPhone Alley spotted a device running a modified version of Mac OS X on a device which was thought to be the new tablet.

As I previously thought, hackers have worked around Apple’s decision to disable the Intel Atom chip in the latestrelease of the operating system (10.6.2). It only took 2 weeks for hackers to figure out how to fix the change, however it doesn’t come without it risks. It’s a full-on replacement kernel for OS X. It was developed by a member of the InsanelyMac forum and it requires a bit of fine tuning to get installed. Download and use at your own risk, links below.

iDashboard v1.0 has been released by WyndWarrior, it’s an iPhone utility which mimics the widget functionality of Mac OS X.

A multi page dashboard for your iPhone! Features a world clock, a calendar, a weather widget, a working calculator, lockscreen dashboard, and double-tap Dashboard. Also will have available widget packs for download in Cydia. Customization features include: wall-papers with auto-dim and the ability to change wallpapers through the photo app.

Steven Troughton-Smith is developing a similar application, which is not yet released.

The latest build of Snow Leopard (10.6.2), no longer supports the Intel Atom chip which is widely used in netbooks.

In the current developer build of 10.6.2, Apple appears to have changed around a lot of CPU related information. One of the effects of this is Apple killing off Intel’s Atom chip.
Among other things, Sleepenabler.KEXT is now ineffective and will need a new version. It is now suggested to run CPUPM with a proper DSDT.

Although Apple has long engadged in a hack-and-mouse game with with users who use Mac OS X onto third-party hardware, some people see it as a shot against low-cost netbooks, maybe meaning a low-cost MacBook soon? Others believes its another sign of the Apple Tablet as it’s rumoured to have a price point a lot higher than netbooks and so Apple is trying to get rid of the competition.

Stellarola also notes that similar restrictions in Leopard 10.5.9 may disable the Atom, and so advises any pre-Snow Leopard hackintoshed Atom netbooks to stick with 10.5.8.

Who know’s how this will be implemented or how long it will take them to figure away round it. But hopefully this won’t end the use of Mac OS X on third-party hardware.

The second picture shows a phone to show both the size comparison and to try and prove its authenticity. It certainly fits the idea of an Apple tablet, with only one button, but we will have to see what else appears.